HOW IT GOT ITS NAME: Named by the General Assembly after Kent county in England. Its Indian name wasScatacook, meaning a place where a river divides.

ORIGINS: The area was originally part of the western lands formerly held by Hartford and Windsor. In 1737, theGeneral Court authorized the sale of those lands for settlement at an auction held at the Colony courthouse in Windham. The town was settled less than a year later and incorporated in 1739.

IRON AGE: The iron industry thrived in Kent in the 1800s. Three blast furnaces operated in the sections ofMacedonia, Flanders and Bulls Bridge to smelt the high-grade iron ore found in the surrounding hills.

DID YOU KNOW: Kent is home to three private prep schools -- Kent School, Marvelwood School and SouthKent School. Kent and Marvelwood are co-educational, South Kent is for boys.